Social protection systems in the Pacific have evolved significantly over the last 50 years, expanding in scope and coverage to support more people when they need it the most.

The drivers have been emerging finance mechanisms, and responding to COVID-19 and natural disasters, which have likewise sparked new thinking and innovative approaches.

Diving into this topic was a socialprotection.org podcast, Evolution of Social Protection in the Pacific, featuring speakers from Partnerships from Social Protection (P4SP) and government representatives from Fiji and Kiribati.

The podcast, published on 28 March 2024, shone a light on trends for social protection in the Pacific, a region with low visibility in global dialogue.

A changing landscape: 50 years of social protection

Social protection investment is not new to the Pacific region.

“Governments have been investing in social protection for nearly five to six decades now,” said P4SP Team Leader Karishma Huda.

“Some countries, like the Cook Islands, have well established systems that cover nearly the entire population across all vulnerable life stages.”

Initially, social protection in the Pacific targeted support to formal workers through provident funds.

“[There was] then a gradual rollout of tax financed social protection programs, mainly for the elderly, people with a disability and for the unemployed a few decades later,” said Karishma.

“So social protection systems in the Pacific region have been evolving from around the time these countries gained independence to now, gradually expanding in scope and coverage.”

Country-led expansion of inclusive system in Kiribati

Over the past decade, some Pacific Island countries have leveraged sovereign wealth funds to manage revenues from natural resources and improve human development outcomes. This has been the case for Kiribati, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, and Timor-Leste.

In the central-Pacific country of Kiribati, 119,000 people live on 20 inhabited islands.

“It [Kiribati’s social protection system] started with the provident fund and expanded into an old age benefit, which came around 2004 and was at that time modest,” said Shirin Gul, Director Social Protection Unit for the Ministry of Women, Youth, Sport, and Social Affairs in Kiribati, who is engaged via P4SP.

“Then came the disability benefit and other universal benefit in around 2018. And an even more broad-based program, the unemployment benefit, came about in 2020,” she said, noting Kiribati is the only Pacific Island country with a broad-based unemployment benefit.

Shirin says the country has led its social protection programming, which has bipartisan support.

This is underscored by the proven impacts of social protection, particularly on women outside the labour force.

“Assessments [in Kiribati] have shown that women are now able to actually access some savings with the money that they are given, and they are spending it on their children's health and education, mostly,” said Shirin.

“Women are able to contribute more fully in communal activities, and that has contributed to their improved participation in community and public life, as well as some degree of, their role and their decision making within their families.

“These are very important aspects which are in line with the policy intent of the government, which takes the Kiribati way of life as the centre of policymaking,” she said.

Increased spending on social protection enables better shock response in Fiji

In Fiji, the government has tripled spending on social protection over the last decade, with the biggest increase happening in the previous five years.

“In 2013, Fiji spent 0.4 percent of its gross domestic production (GDP) on its four main social assistance schemes, but by 2018, this expenditure doubled to 0.8 percent of GDP,” said Veremo Muria, Director at the Department of Social Welfare in Fiji.

Social protection systems are a key vehicle to distribute money after natural disasters such as Tropical Cyclone Winston in February 2016, the most intense tropical cycle ever recorded in the southern hemisphere.

“We managed to respond in a timely way by pushing cash out four weeks after the disaster,” he said.

“Households covered under the Poverty Benefit Scheme, Social Pension Scheme, and Care and Protection Allowance were provided with top-up payments equivalent to three months of their regular benefits, which was designed to help them meet their basic needs.”

The country is undertaking a reform of its social protection programs with technical support from the Australian Government through P4SP and the World Bank.

“Fiji is currently working on making it [cash payments] more accessible prior to any disaster. It’s a work in progress,” Veremo said.

“We know that by strengthening our program operations and developing an integrated management information system that house all of our beneficiaries’ data, the Fijian Government will be in a stronger position to respond to shocks.”

COVID-19 triggered new programs and innovative thinking

COVID-19 was a major shock, causing several Pacific countries to leverage existing social protection programs as part of their national response.

“The most widely supported groups were the elderly and people with disabilities, receiving top ups to their benefits,” explained Karishma.

The pandemic also led many countries to create new programs to reach new populations and develop new payment methods.

“Samoa, for example, implemented a one-time universal cash benefit for everyone who signed up for a national ID,” she said.

“Tuvalu also set up a temporary universal basic income scheme for all citizens.”

“Fiji, for example, enabled registrations and payments through mobile phones. This was a useful innovation that stuck and is now part of the social protection delivery system there.”

Like the rest of the world, COVID-19 was as a tipping point for strengthening social protection in the Pacific, said Karishma.

“Although it wasn't a catalyst to social protection development in the region, it did introduce opportunities to stress test their enrollment and payment systems, and come up with innovative solutions."

Future priorities: Digital platforms, inclusion and responsive systems

Looking to the future, Veremo said that modernisation, adaptive social protection, and gender sensitive approaches are priorities for Fiji.

“We are looking at digital innovation, which is using digital platforms to deliver efficient and effective social protection services.

“As the Pacific is very prone to natural disasters, we need to be climate resilient and ensure that we are integrating social protection with adaptive social protection strategies.

“It is well noted on our social protection reform agenda and designing social protection programs that it is inclusive and addresses the needs and vulnerabilities of women and girls.”

Inclusive social protection is likewise a priority for Kiribati, said Shirin.

“In terms of new frontiers, I see the inclusion of women in the economy and building the way towards women's economic empowerment through well designed social protection programs.”

These country focuses reflect the broader geographic trends across the Pacific region.

“Governments are realising that through their existing programs, they're already reaching a significant percentage of the population," Karishma said.

“So, we see a push towards effective and efficient social protection system delivery that can be scaled up when the next emergency hits.”

Listen to the podcast: Emerging Trends in the Indo-Pacific Series Ep. 01 | The Evolution of SP in the Pacific | socialprotection.org